Reel Grrls Board

ILONA ROSSMAN HO
President
co-chair, Governance Committee

OWNER OF CANINE PRODUCTIONS
BOARD MEMBER SINCE 2009

Ilona Rossman Ho is a filmmaker based in Seattle, WA, dedicated to expanding the female voice in media both in front and behind the camera. Her energy is focused on the local film community and she is fully involved with both Women in Film Seattle and Reel Grrls. In 2010 she won an Emmy for her short film Kites Over Washington and was a finalist for the 2010 IFP Spotlight Award. Ilona has mentored several grrls for Reel Grrls including working with her mentees on the 2011 Seattle International Film Festival Fly Filmmaking Challenge. She recently completed a music video: Broken which she produced. Her short Dressing Up won a 4Culture Grant and is currently in post-production. She is also in post-production on a documentary about the Fremont Solstice Parade, and in pre-production on a feature film set in the Seattle International District. She has a wonderful husband and three captivating kids who inspire and motivate her. Three women she admires the most are Juliette Low, Grace Hopper, and Amy Poehler. Her favorite film is The Purple Rose of Cairo, and her favorite filmmaker is Sally Potter.

Jennifer Geist
Vice President
CO-CHAIR, GOVERNANCE COMMITTEE

Zeitgeist Creations
Board Member since 2009

Jennifer joined the Reel Grrls Board in 2009, a few years after her daughter completed the Lights, Camera Action Program. She had an outstanding experience working on a team, crafting a story, and creating an experience for their audience. Jennifer has worked in the education field for 20 years, as a language teacher, curriculum writer, and media arts coach, all with a focus on globalizing classrooms by using these tools to bring international perspectives to our thinking. Language and multimedia connects our students to the world, and the world to them. Zeitgeist Creations is her consulting company, and she works mostly in Latin America and the Middle East. Her favorite part of being on the Reel Grrls board is the vision of the staff, mentors and students working it all through, tackling the struggle, and all with such mutual respect and admiration. Reel Grrls is the best of humanity, it is high quality education, and she feels lucky to be a part of it. Some women she admires are Allison Warren, Chavela Vargas and after the Democratic National Convention on September 4, 2012 – Michelle Obama. A favorite film of hers is Benny and Joon, and her favorite director is Jane Campion.

Jennifer Slawson McNett     
Treasurer
Co-Chair: Finance Committee

Senior Manager, Marketing for Amazon.com        

Jennifer Slawson McNett is a marketing professional for digital products at Amazon.com and manages the Kindle offline customer experience.  Prior to this role, she was a product manager for the Internet Movie Database (IMDb) and an advertising program manager in the US and UK.  With a prior life in social enterprise, she is devoted to new venture and financial planning for non-profits that drive innovation and sustainability. Supporting Reel Grrls' learning and development in media and film is what inspires me most to be on the board.  Her favorite film is Amélie. Three women who inspire Jennifer are Jenny Holzer, Sheryl Sandberg, Mother Teresa, and Janet Jackson.

CHRISTINA ZIMMERLI LIBERTINI
SECRETARY
FUNDRAISING COMMITTEE

VIDEO PRODUCTION DIRECTOR FOR NORDSTROM, INC.
BOARD MEMBER SINCE 2011

Christina Zimmerli Libertini is a content producer and director, focused on digital media. She is currently in charge of video production at Nordstrom, Inc.; her experience includes museums, non-profits and corporations. As a self-professed A/V geek, she's passionate about getting digital tools into the hands of girls everywhere, so they can press records and change the world. Recently, her favorite women are (in no particular order), Tina Fey, Martha Stewart, and J.K. Rowling. Her favorite films come in three categories: sentimental, life changing, and cinematic. They are, in their respective order, The Princess Bride, Harold and Maude, and, Blade Runner. Her favorite director is Hayao Miyazaki.

Christina Levy
Fundraising Committee
Reel Grrls Parent
Board Member since 2011

Being a pre-school dropout was a sign that Christina’s life would be unconventional. Finishing high school, then bumming around for several years, she met her soul mate of 23 years at a supermarket in Boston’s Back Bay. Two girls later, Microsoft called and the family relocated in ’97 from Boston to Woodinville. Christina chose the unconventional route to home school her girls, wanting to raise strong and self-determined young woman. It sounds good, but honestly, she wanted to experience life with them on their own terms. Her youngest, Julia, has been involved with Reel Grrls since ’08. Filmmaking was the catalyst, but the women who mentored Julia were the true jewels. The passion and respect shown to Julia were amazing and they, as a family, want to support Reel Grrls in any way possible. She is an occasional knitter, certified foodie/oenophile, gardener and a destroyer of stereotypes. Her favorite directors are Robert Altman and Sally Potter. Her favorite films are The Incredibles, Mary and Max, and Princess Mononoke – you can’t have only one! Three women she admires the most are her best buddy and partner in crime, Norah Omerod, Sojourner Truth, and finally, Rachael Carson.

Kate L. Pickle
Governance Committee
K-12 Informal STEM Education Professional

Board Member since 2011

Kate L. Pickle brings with her more than ten years of youth development experience, with a focus on STEM (Science, Tech, Engineering, and Math), from both local Girl Scout councils in the Northeast as well as the national organization. She has a proven track record of developing strong collaborations which leverage each party’s strengths to reach a common goal, has developed a youth program through her work at Girl Scouts, and has a reputation for building strong relationships with funders for long-term support to meet mutual goals. Her favorite film directors are Steven Spielberg and Ron Howard and her favorite film is Schindler’s List. A handful of women she admires are Juliette Gordon Low, Sally Ride, and the promise of today’s youth!

Amanda Ballantyne
GOVERNANCE COMMITTEE – On leave Winter 2013

Special Assistant to the President at SEIU Healthcare 775NW

Board Member since 2012

Amanda Ballantyne joined the Reel Grrls board in 2012. She is a recent graduate of University of Washington School of Law where she focused on labor and employment law. She now works on labor law and policy issues for SEIU Healthcare 775NW, a large local labor union that represents home care and nursing home workers. Amanda has a long history as an activist and organizer on social and economic justice issues, including her national work for the media policy organization Free Press, where she spent several years organizing future of media town hall meetings across the country. Amanda's work with Reel Grrls focuses on ensuring that Reel Grrls is one of the best nonprofits to work for in the city. Three women that influence and inspire her are her mother, her grandmother, and her aunt, Annie. Her favorite film is The Rocky Horror Picture Show, and though she doesn’t have a favorite director, she does love films.

MELINDA FOX
CO-CHAIR, FUNDRAISING COMMITTEE

FUNDRAISING STRATEGIST AND SOCIAL ENTREPRENEUR  
BOARD MEMBER SINCE 2013

Melinda Fox honed her professional fundraising career in Washington, D.C. where she held executive level fundraising and strategy positions in renowned advocacy organizationsworking on animal protection, women’s health, girls empowerment, progressive state ballot initiatives and political campaigns. Prior to relocating back to the Northwest, she worked in business development for the world’s fastest growing social action platform – Change.org. Today, she’s a fundraising strategist and social entrepreneur working on an exciting consumer powered mobile app which crowd-sources moviegoers to support opening weekends of films directed by women, written by women and/or women-centric.Simultaneously, this app will increase women’s power and visibility in entertainment by influencing the one thing that counts in the movie business - box officerevenue. Melinda joined forces with Reel Grrls because she feels it's vital that more voices be part of global media - and that means women and girls must fight twice as hard to represent themselves and be heard. Reel Grrls provides access for girls to learn media literacy, to create media, and express their points of view though media. When people share their stories, the world is always better for it. Melinda’s favorite film is The Way We Were, and her favorite director is Jane Campion. Three women Melinda has deep admiration for are Simone de Beauvoir, Alice Walker, and Tina Fey.

CORI READY
FUNDRAISING COMMITTEE

Creative Workforce Consultant, Marketer and Event Designer  
BOARD MEMBER SINCE 2013

Cori Ready is an event designer, scene maker and entrepreneurial community builder who has managed campaigns turning out superior product with attention paid to the smallest of details for clients like Vulcan, Zaaz, PopCap Games, Forest City, Publicis, Maveron, EMP, KEXP and more. Specializing in strategic partnerships, Cori had the ability to lead or direct cross-functional teams across multiple geographical locations in experiential marketing campaigns and execute events for up to 25,000 people. An expert public speaker, she provides turn-key solutions for ideation to execution. A fast-thinker fluent in innovation, Cori cost effectively and efficiently utilizes heterogeneous resources with every project. In addition to RG, she also is a bard member for Seattle Design Foundation, member of the Seattle Parks Foundation Communications Committee, and a member of ARCADE Magazine Special Events Committee. Cori was named Best Event Planner by Seattle Metropolitan Magazine in 2008 and Best Entrepreneur by CRAVE in 2008. Three women she admires are Angela Davis, Michelle Obama and Marina Abramovic. Her favorite films are Shadows by John Cassavetes and Naked Spaces Living is Round by Trinh T. Minh-ha.